I Will Be By Your Side
by Konstantinsen
Summary: In the wake of the inevitable, Saphron Cotta-Arc decides to visit the girl her brother Jaune often spoke so highly of and set things straight. Not only for her own sake, but for the sake of the Huntress he left behind.
1. Hospital

It was not that hard to find her room.

It was rather hard, though, to see her in such a state as this.

Ruby Rose sat on her hospital bed, hooked to a tube, head shrouded in a waterfall of black hair reddened at the tips. Her hands rested atop the blanket draped over her lower body. No one needed to see what had been done to salvage her legs, let alone what was left of them when she was retrieved from ground zero by a team of Atlas specialists. Not even the best of Atlas technology could raise the chances of restoring her Semblance.

Saphron Cotta-Arc took slow steps, inching closer and closer to the girl her younger brother so highly regarded. This same girl, said to have been the paragon of undying hope, did not acknowledge her presence. This girl who had been so vibrant and cheerful when she first entered her household in Argus all those years ago...with her brother by her side and a large team of Huntsmen and Huntresses on a mission to preserve humanity...

"Um, hello."

Ruby angled her head to regard her visitor. Damp silver irises shone through strands of hair, weighted by hours of mourning and a pale face damp with dried tears. The same eyes that could petrify the mightiest Grimm, the same Huntress of her generation with unparalleled mastery of the scythe, the same girl who radiated optimism in the darkest hours...reduced to a sullen paraplegic mess in a hospital ward. She was so...shattered.

Saphron awkwardly waved. "I don't know if you remember me."

"Saphron...?"

The elder Arc sibling sighed. "You do. That's great. Uh, hi. How...how're you feeling?"

Way to start a conversation, Saph. The stunned surprise on Ruby's face dimmed until the reaper dipped her head once again. "... Hey."

Saphron glanced around before sucking in a deep breath. She was in her thirties, damn it. She was married with a son and a secure job that netted her enough to pay for the exorbitant living costs that came with Atlas protection. Ruby was in her mid-twenties and a renowned Huntress with years of experience. How hard could it be to have a chat among adults?

Pretty difficult, actually. Given the circumstances.

But she came here to talk. And talk, she will. The elder Arc sibling pulled up a chair and sat beside the wounded Huntress. "Ruby...I'm not here to...say what the others are saying."

Ruby craned her head towards her.

She rested her hands over her palm. And cupped it. "Hey. I'm here to help. I want to know how you're feeling."

The reaper did not pull away. Nor did she say anything for a moment.

It seemed like she had run into a brick wall until she heard a muffled noise escape her lips. Droplets landed on her hands. Saphron glanced up to find Ruby breaking down.

"How could you," the Huntress sobbed, "how could you still be here...after what happened to Jaune..."

"Ruby, you—"

"I failed. I failed him. I could have done something. Anything... But I didn't...I couldn't... And now...now, he's gone... Just like Pyrrha...like Yang and Weiss and Blake—"

Saphron grabbed her cheeks, startling her. She held nothing against this girl. She was grateful for all that she had done, all the unneeded effort she expended to fulfill her duties as a Huntress. She realized she herself was pouring tears but she didn't care. "Ruby, please... It's not your fault."

"It is! I was there! I saw him die..." She was bawling now. "He was right there...and he was gone..."

"And there was nothing you could have done."

Ruby gaped at her wide-eyed. "W-what?"

Saphron cupped her hands. Unlike what most people would say, she knew her brother more than anyone in their family did. She understood his frustrations, understood his motivations. Yes, she did regret some of his actions to get to where he was but it didn't matter now. He had become a Huntsman, fulfilled his dream to be a hero, and even got the unwanted bonus of serving in a branch of the Atlas military for a time.

Though that last part created the domino effect that spiraled into this conclusion. Her brother had paid the ultimate price. Willingly. She understood that too as best she could.

"Jaune did what he believed was right," she told the crippled girl. "He knew the risks and he took it. He knew his chances and he took it. And as his sister, I supported him. I respected his decisions and I supported him all the way until the end. I...accepted the inevitable when he left our home for the last time."

Glistening silver irises melted against caring sapphires. The elder Arc sibling wrapped the broken reaper in her arms.

"You're a wonderful person, Ruby. Don't let anyone demean you for your limitations. You tried your very best and I believe you. I don't hold anything against you. Yes, I was hurt. Yes, I was angry. But I never was angry for long...because I know that it would do nothing to help us get past this."

Saphron held tight and she felt Ruby complete their embrace; they both released the dam holding back their emotions. When they pulled back, their shoulders were moist with their shared tears. It was then that Saphron noticed a distinctive white stick set aside on her bedside table. Two sharp red lines stuck out.

Ruby didn't stop her from picking it up. She sunk back onto her bed and let her examine the results. Positive results.

The elder Arc sibling gawked at the reaper. "You loved him, didn't you..."

The wounded Huntress was out of breath that her reply came in broken whispers, "I loved him so much... He was everything to me..."

Saphron could not stop her emotions from bursting out once again. Jaune would always saturate his letters to home with paragraphs of praise over his partner, loose remarks about her character, and countless other hints that he unwittingly dropped whenever he went on about her. She had always known her brother had been enraptured with this girl. Now, there was no denying it. "You were everything to him, you know."

And Ruby cried again. Right back into her arms.

"He would have wanted you to be happy," Saphron soothed. "I know how painful this is to you. To me. To us. But he would not have wanted us to be broken over his grave forever. For his sake, for his memory, we push on." She pulled back and pressed her forehead against her unofficial sister-in-law. "I'll be here with you, as Jaune had been."

"He was anxious about starting a family," the reaper admitted distantly. "He was afraid of fatherhood. Of being there for his...our...my child. Of not being around to be a dad..."

"That's just like him. He'd still be there," Saphron reiterated over a light chuckle.

"He would have." A sniffle. "He once asked me about settling down...someday. I think he was...he was going to..."

Saphron offered a sad smile. The many secrets divulged in letters to home. Soon, she would have to unseal that metal box in her drawer and show her the heaps of mail from her brother, each one bearing at least a section of adoration for the Huntress. "He thought of proposing."

She bit her trembling lip. "H-he did?"

A somber nod.

Ruby blinked wide-eyed at her sheets. "He did. We were going to be together... Now...I'm alone and I'm...I'm scared. I...I'm the only one left of my family..."

The elder Arc sibling rested her hand on her shoulder. "A family isn't one person. You have the next generation inside you. You won't be alone. You'll never be."

An uneasy mien came back at her. "I...don't know how...to be a mother."

"If that's the case, then I'll help you raise your child. Might even teach Adrian a thing or two about raising kids like he was."

Ruby was wide-eyed and startled. "Y-you would?"

Saphron beamed. "That's right. You have my word as an Arc that I will be by your side in motherhood. And an Arc never goes back on their word."

And for the first time in what must have been a long time, Ruby smiled. "Thank you...thank you..."

"No. Thank you," Saphron openly wept in return, "for being his world."

* * *

**ORIGINALLY DRAFTED: February 19, 2019**

**LAST EDITED: February 20, 2019**

**INITIALLY UPLOADED: February 19, 2019**

**NOTE: I wanted to write something with Saphron in it. And this idea was boiling in my head long before Volume 6 came out. Saphron's introduction made it easier to finish this because I won't have to make up an Arc sister. How'd I do?**


	2. Memorial

Saphron found him standing alone by the memorial. His teammates somberly pointed out his desire to whittle away some of the idle hours before their sanctioned flight to Atlas. It took her a moment to compose herself before she approached her brother.

"Hey."

He turned to meet her, his face encased in that painful expression she hated seeing. It had barely been a year and already he was a different man, no longer her cute little baby brother. "Hey, Saph."

Saphron rested her hand on his shoulder. "I saw your fight...at the Vytal tournament. You were amazing and...talented with leading your team."

He sighed. "Thanks. It was fun while it lasted."

"Yeah, you did great. Awesome! Really, you were." She honestly had lost the words to best convey how proud she was of him. "Sorry. You know me. Never really good with compliments."

"Heh. It runs in the blood."

"Jaune. Are you...okay?"

Five seconds of uncomfortable soundless emptiness. "... I'm fine."

She could hardly tell if that was true or not. Despite how close they were in the family, there was a part of him that had been foreign to her. Perhaps it Beacon that created this enigma. The elder Arc rounded him to stand at his side, likewise gazing up at the statue of the late Pyrrha Nikos. His partner and friend...and if the rumors were to be believed, something more. She stopped herself from asking about that, knowing how painful that would be.

It took her another long moment to find the right words. "You were lucky to have had someone like her on your side."

He nodded at the monument. "She's the reason...why I'm here. Could be luck. Or destiny."

Saphron faced her brother, expecting brokenness. Instead, she found him...calm. Resolved. Confident. Only reminiscing. "I'm sure she would have been proud of you."

"She is," he answered her with a smile. Not a sad smile. No tears came flowing, no depressing emotion to sully his puffy face. "She always will be."

The elder Arc could not have been more proud or relieved. Jaune, her baby brother, had come so far.

* * *

Saphron would find him standing in the same spot. As was the norm whenever he had the opportunity to visit Argus, once every two months or so or whenever he could bargain for furlough.

He would always be craning his head up to the concrete likeness of his partner, maintaining a silent vigil over the memorial. Sometimes, he would be kneeling before the epitaph. Other times, he would be seated by the base of the monument or occupying one of the benches nearby. Always, his attention remained cemented on the statue of Pyrrha Nikos. His friend, his partner, his...first true chance at romance that never came to fruition as she later learned.

Saphron could never forget those days when her brother would lose himself in the solitude of the park. Everyone in Argus knew. Everyone in Mistral knew. And everyone respected Jaune Arc enough to give him the privacy of his ritual. Hooligans and vandals learned the hard way to respect the dead.

She recalled the last time she came to fetch him from this very place. He had been keeping to his vigil long enough that he had slacked. His shoulders sagged, his arms hung limp, his head dipped down to the epitaph immortalizing her name.

"Hey," she croaked.

"Hey," he croaked back.

"It's late."

A grunt. "I know."

"Come on. You'll freeze."

A dry chuckle. "Sure."

Saphron gave him her best comforting smile when he turned to meet her; she would always try to make him feel better. Together, they would walked home. Often in silence, seldom chatting. Only until the following day did he feel like himself again.

It never really sat well with her but she tried to be as supportive as she could. Years on and he had was still haunted by the guilt of that fateful day. She could tell. The pain, the regret, the penitence. He was alright, he would say. And he was for the most part. He exercised enough self-control to remain sober well into his Huntsman career.

She was proud of her brother, of his accomplishments, of how far he had come. All thanks to his hard work, his dedication, his stubbornness, and the unwavering support of the girl immortalized in this patch of greenery in the middle of Argus. And she held no doubts that his current partner and friend for many years since the Fall of Beacon shared similar sentiments.

"I'm sorry," she remembered him saying that final night of his final visit, "I can't make any promises this time."

Adrian had cried himself to sleep at his uncle's words. Terra had to carry him to his room, partially to hide her own tears. Saphron long shed hers, having fully accepted the inevitable. They embraced for the last time, expressing their sentiments.

"I can't give you my word. But can I ask you for yours?" he asked her when they separated.

"Anything," she sniffled.

"Take care of family for me. Please."

It was an odd request as they were already family. Until she realized what he meant or rather _who_ he meant. "I will. Arc's word and you know it."

He smiled at her. "An Arc never goes back on his word."

Then he slung over his duffel bag, gave one last wave, and walked down the steps, down the street, down to the military base on the islet off the coast of Argus. He was off to what would inevitably become his final mission. It would be the last time she ever saw him.

* * *

Saphron stood before the memorial of Pyrrha Nikos, letting her hands drop from the handle grips on Ruby's wheelchair. Recounting the days was not easy but the more she dredged up the past, the lesser it hurt.

"...I knew that day would come. Even if I did expect it, it wasn't easy to power through. When the officers knocked on the door, I already knew what they were going to say. I had a hard time breathing for a couple minutes."

The Huntress in question offered her a meek if not apologetic smile, a far cry from the miserable mien crossing her features back in that hospital bed a couple months ago. "He really appreciated you being there with him."

The elder Arc smiled back. "He rarely had anything to say whenever he was out here. It was like he was hit by a spell every time he crossed the colonnade."

"He never had much to say because he believed that all was said and done."

Saphron could agree to that. "I guess he just missed her presence."

The evening breeze ruffled through their coats, carrying a dried maple leaf that landed squarely on Ruby's lap. The Huntress fiddled with it until it was blown away from her fingers.

"Pyrrha never really liked the attention. She had to be someone else every day of the week because of her fame," Ruby said solemnly, caressing the tips of the red roses she had picked from the florist. "She just wanted a normal life. She wanted to be herself for once without the world judging her or holding her hand."

"And she had that chance to be so," answered the elder Arc.

The crippled Huntress wheeled herself close to the base of the statue to lay the bouquet down on the base of her feet. She leaned back to wipe a stray tear while a hand rested on the growing bulge on her belly.

The two of them stayed in the funereal air a few minutes more before Ruby nudged at Saphron. The northern Mistrali winds were kicking in, carrying a creeping chill that made them both wrap their coats tighter around themselves. The elder Arc gripped the handles of her wheelchair and slowly pulled back. They were quiet until they left the park. As soon as they crossed onto the sidewalk, they slipped back into casual conversation.

Moving on was difficult. They still were, marking the slow, small steps they made.

"I don't know if I can handle twins," Ruby said. "A boy and a girl."

Saphron felt bad for her. A cripple confined to a wheelchair having to take care of two rowdy kids, both forming at the same time. It would be quite the birthing. "Hey, those twins have two capable aunts and an old-enough babysitter."

The reaper chuckled. For all her feared prowess in the field and her unmatched skill as a Huntress, Ruby was still a woman in her mid-twenties who was lacking in so many areas. Motherhood was going to be a debilitating challenge but one that she was more than ready to tackle head on. "Yeah. Adrian's been asking me for names."

"Come up with any?"

She tapped her bottom lip. "A few. I'm making a list to choose from."

The elder Arc glanced away for a bit when the thought crossed her mind. "Ever considered, you know, naming them after..."

Ruby shrugged. "I have. There are other names too but I don't mind attaching a second name. You know. In memory of. Sounds cliché for the most part but I think it rolls off the tongue just fine if the boy was named after his father and the girl after Mistral's best."

Saphron simpered, relieved at how well she was taking all this. "Need help in that department?"

"Very much appreciated," tittered the paraplegic Huntress.

* * *

**ORIGINALLY DRAFTED: March 4, 2019**

**LAST EDITED: March 4, 2019**

**INITIALLY UPLOADED: March 4, 2019**


	3. Residence

Ruby stretched her arms over her head.

Outside her window, the street lamps had yet to flicker off. That usually meant that she had woken up thirty minutes before sunrise. Which was normal even with the way she was now.

The Huntress slowly swung over the side of her bed until she could feel the bare tingling of her soles on her feet rubbing the bristles on the carpet. Then came the first challenge of the day: getting into her wheelchair.

It was not easy the first week but with perseverance and a little help, she mastered the routine on her own. Five minutes later, she was in her kitchen, lifting a drenched tea bag from her steaming mug of honeyed milk while her free hand opened up the tin holding last night's assorted biscuits. She drew her finger across the volume bar on her scroll, filling up the room with acoustic tones that fueled her morning vibe.

So far, it was another modest start to another uneventful day in the life of this paraplegic Huntress.

"Hey. Family's coming over."

Mostly uneventful. At least Ruby had enough control over herself not to scream in surprise.

"Sorry, I didn't knock," Saphron apologized with a cracked voice.

Ruby turned to face her housemate. "Do you ever?"

The elder Arc shrugged. "You don't seem to notice. For a Huntress."

The reaper chuckled, cradling her mug. "You're awake this early."

"So I could warn you," Saphron replied, slinking into her couch in the living room. "Family's coming over."

"Mama Arc?"

"And Papa Arc. And the six other she-devils they raised together." Saphron sunk back onto the leather with her arms thrown over her head. With how disheveled she appeared—messy hair, baggy cracked eyes, ruffled pajamas—there would be no guess that she lacked another couple hours of sleep. "They just sent the word late last night. After I went to sleep. Just saw the text ten minutes ago. Sent at three in the morning... Ugh..."

Ruby giggled, having rounded her living quarters to face her unofficial sister-in-law. "You seem worried."

Saph raised her arm over her face to gawk at her. "I am. For your sake and mine. You've never met them."

"_Yet_," came the cheerful response. "There's always a first time for everything."

* * *

Saphron was left staring at her flatmate. It took a while for her parents to get used to Terra and only until Adrian came around did they fully come around. But that was because Terra was around to stand her ground. With Jaune...

The elder Arc sat up on the couch and rubbed her heavy eyes. A part of her wondered how Ruby could be so optimistic about this. Then again, the rest of her knew the answer to that.

There was no use in moping. Not anymore.

They had grieved together.

They moped together.

They were getting over this together with Ruby apparently making more progress than she did.

But that was nothing to feel off about. In layman's terms, Saph was a civilian with expertise in public affairs while Ruby was an experienced Huntress who had more than once stared down the legendary Queen of the Grimm and lived to tell of it...if she was pressed into telling about it.

"Jaune buttered them up, I think," Ruby said.

Saphron raised her brow. She didn't know about that and she pored through her brother's letters and messages—including the ones that were withheld by the Atlas military—three times already and she vaguely recalled coming across any direct correspondences with the rest of the Arc family. Then again, it was ten minutes to sunrise and she was usually awake later than that which meant that her mind was not at full capacity to recall and scrutinize such details.

Thank goodness Terra and Adrian were still asleep. Besides, Terra could whip up Adrian's breakfast in her place anyway and get him to pack up for school faster than she could on any given day.

"Besides, I think they can't be apprehensive after they see this," Ruby continued, patting her swelling belly.

Saphron softened at the sight of the slight bulge. Nearly three months in. And still no official names for the next generation of Arcs. The list was still growing. Perhaps the rest of the family could help. Perhaps.

"Hey, just in case, I'm prepping," the elder Arc said.

Ruby nodded. "Yeah. I can already imagine the worst that could happen."

"Please, don't jinx it."

A weak giggle. "Yeah, you're right. Honestly, I'm still nervous."

Saphron rested her hand on the reaper's shoulder. "So am I. But we're not facing down Grimm here. We're facing my mom. And my dad. And my six crazy sisters. Who are ten times worse than Grimm on a bad day."

"Assuming it wouldn't be a bad day?" Ruby offered with a poor smirk.

"Not with mom and dad's new soon-to-be grandkids," Saphron snickered with a slight tap on Ruby's stomach. "Hey, I've got your back. Don't worry."

"You're worrying."

"Because you're worrying me with your worrying."

"I wasn't worrying."

Gods, Ruby has taken so much after her brother. Saphron merely chuckled as she stood up to get herself a plate of cookies from Ruby's kitchen. Even though she had a whole bucket of them in her pantry across the hall. Beats walking across the flat though.

* * *

To think today would be as uneventful as the last.

Ruby Rose sighed as she sat back on her wheelchair while Saphron filled up the laundry bins with her clothes. She was a grown woman, for crying out loud! A veteran Huntress with over a decade's worth of heavy experience under her belt. Sure she suffered a literally paralyzing handicap but she could take care of herself. She could shove her shirts, skirts, shorts, and silken lingerie into the machine and reach up to push the buttons for the spin cycle. She had done it all before.

But that was when her stomach wasn't this...constricting.

Standing was out of the question for obvious reasons. She could use a broomstick, an umbrella, or even her unused crutches to reach the buttons but Saphron kept them out of her reach.

"You don't want to squish the babies."

Ruby blew raspberries. Yes, even as a grown woman in her mid-twenties, she could and would still do that. She leaned back on her wheelchair as she rolled her eyes in front of her unofficial guardian.

"That belly of yours isn't getting smaller."

Which was true. Though, that meant being less and less involved in her normal day-to-day chores and activities which, as of late, was what drove off the boredom other than the usual movie binging, comic books, and other hobbies she carried over from her teenage years. At least she could still tinker with Crescent Rose...even though there was almost never a reason to use her weapon anymore other than as an extended arm to reach for things.

"So," Saph huffed, wheeling her back into the living room while the washing machine hummed its tune in the back. "Have you thought about...y'know..."

Ruby sighed. This again. "Yeah. A lot."

"And?"

Truth be told—and she had told her and many others many times—Ruby did not ask for prosthetics. Still, she could not dictate the minds of Atlas even if one of them was her direct superior and the older sister of one of her closest best friends. "Still won't change my mind."

"Hey, just so you know, Terra says they've gone past the prototype stage. They're assembling a pair. For you."

This time, Ruby groaned. "I still have my legs."

"'_Available option_.' Their words, she said."

"Available options? Really? What, are they going to cut off my legs and replace them with titanium alloy gun-boots?"

Saphron winced slightly at that though Ruby didn't see. "They're trying to be helpful."

"They're trying too hard," the reaper grumbled. "If they want to help me, they should just let me recover on my own. I don't need Aura-inducing nano-chips in my veins or prosthetic leg cannons! I just want to heal naturally on my own!"

The elder Arc was silent.

Ruby blinked and dropped her face into her hands. "I'm sorry, Saph. I didn't mean to go off on you on that."

"Hey, it's okay. I understand."

"No, you don't—"

"I don't entirely but I still do."

The crippled Huntress opened her mouth to argue. Then clamped it shut. There was no argument to be made. Saphron may have her whole body intact though that did not disqualify her from comprehending the challenges of losing major assets, especially if said assets were tied to one's own Semblance.

"Yeah, you're right." Ruby shook her head. "I'm sorry, I've been a bit... Ugh."

"I think that's the pregnancy talking."

"Too early for that, I think."

Saphron chortled. "Nah, it's normal."

* * *

Ruby held the frame photograph with trepidation.

Saphron's voice broke through her mental barrier. "You don't have to put it up if it bothers you that much."

The reaper closed her eyes, counted to three, and breathed deep. She held up the picture and planted it on top of the fireplace. It would be the most recent one among the handful lining the mantel. The first was the group photograph of team RWBY from their Beacon days. Followed by a couple shots taken with family and a few snaps of their adventures after the Fall.

Lastly, was her newest addition. Her and Jaune armed and in full regalia. A stolen shot given their startled, unsmiling faces and the fact that it was taken prior to a reconnaissance mission two months before the...inevitable.

The Red Reaper and the Gold Knight.

Gone were those days.

Ruby swallowed the lump in her throat. She could recover. She could still fight on as a Huntress, as the Red Reaper. But the story of the Gold Knight had already concluded. As did the stories of many others among their circle of friends.

The two ladies expected tears though none came flowing. Rather, they stood in stoic silence in front of the fireplace, poring over photographs on the mantel shelf to the staccato of the grandfather clock in the back wall.

"... My kids would only get pictures and videos of their dad," Ruby echoed somberly.

"At least they won't see him as a stranger."

"I hope not."

Saphron folded her arms confidently. "That's what family's for."

The reaper huffed. "Now I'm really getting nervous about meeting the rest of the Arcs."

"Hey, I've got your back. Terra and Adrian'd be here, too. It's the weekend and Terra's taking the day off for this so you've got nothing to worry about."

Ruby raised her brow. "Nothing?"

"Nothing much."

* * *

**ORIGINALLY DRAFTED: April 19, 2019**

**LAST EDITED: April 20, 2019**

**INITIALLY UPLOADED: April 20, 2019**


	4. Will

The air was quiet in the Cotta-Arc household.

In the living room, sat on the couch was Saphron, shifting uneasy smiles between her tenant Ruby Rose and their visitor Winter Schnee. Yes, _the _Winter Schnee of the Schnee Dust Company, the same Winter Schnee who held the rank of colonel in the Atlas military, the same specialist whose punitive operations were documented for their unorthodox but highly effective stratagems.

Also the same Winter Schnee who had sent Ruby and Jaune on that fateful mission, the results of which were plain as day in front of her.

While Saphron believed herself to have let go of any grudges towards the officer, she had to admit that Winter's physical presence in her own home was fueling her discomfort. Meaning it was not just the suffocating animosity radiating from Ruby that made the air so thick she could hardly breathe. At least Terra was at work and Adrian was at school lest this would be too much for her own psyche.

The elder Arc did not hate Winter per se. However, she personally did not consider her a friend. Yet.

Ruby on the other hand...

A teeny, tiny voice in the back of her mind was humming wildly: _awkwaaaard_.

At least the tea and biscuits were warming things up. Kind of. Sort of. Hopefully.

Ruby was unsmiling, her hands gripping the armrests of her wheelchair. This did not seem to bother Winter, though it was clear the elder Schnee was trying to repair burned bridges; her back was straight while she immaculately held the platter and teacup over her lap. Pleasantries aside, Winter did most of the talking.

Saphron had been expecting something like this yet was still surprised with what she had learned from her late brother's commanding officer. Even then, she was inwardly panicking. Such a topic was quite sensitive and if today was one of those moody days for the paraplegic reaper...

Ruby's hollow voice croaked for the first time since their guest sat down. "So...you're not changing anything?"

"There is nothing to change," Winter replied evenly.

Saphron fidgeted in the numbing silence until Ruby continued. "So that's it then. No cuts, no revisions, no strings attached. Everyone gets their fair share as stated and we all go on with our lives."

"To the letter."

"Is there anything else, ma'am?" Ruby pressed.

"With regards to Major Arc's last will and testament, nothing more."

Saphron dipped her head slightly to hide her biting her lip. Had Jaune's promotion not been posthumous, he would have been one of the youngest people to hold such a rank in the Atlas military, possibly climbing the same ladder that had Winter sitting on the rung as among the few people in recorded history to be promoted to colonel far below the average age of fifty.

"I see," hummed the reaper.

Winter took another sip, wallowing in the moment until she gazed up with steely eyes towards the reaper. Such a gaze made Saphron freeze. No wonder they called her the 'Ice Queen.' This military lady was downright terrifying with just that look!

Ruby, interestingly, held an eerily similar glower, enough that Saphron was now downright scared shitless of both women. Her palms were sweating over her teacup while she glanced back and forth between the two vixens. They both seemed to have forgotten her presence altogether.

Tick, tock. Tick, tock. The silence was agonizing.

Winter set down her platter and rested her hands on her lap. Her gaze was the same but her voice surprised Saphron.

"Ruby, never a day goes by that I regret issuing your orders."

The elder Arc turned to the mother of her brother's children. Ruby was frighteningly quiet. Stone-faced.

The officer continued. "I don't expect you to forgive me. I can understand why."

The reaper was gripping the armrests of her wheelchair. Hard.

Winter closed her eyes to breathe deep. When she opened them, the mien she displayed was replaced with a softer expression—less fitting of an uncompromising grizzled military officer, more worn by a passionately sympathetic civilian. "Ruby, I am very truly sorry."

Tick, tock. Tick, tock. Oh gods, the atmosphere was suffocating.

"Expressing further my regrets would not bring him back. Would not bring any of them back."

Saphron could feel her heartbeat racing faster than the seconds ticking by. Ruby was stone-faced. Too stone-faced. What could she, a civilian, do if things go south? If the worst comes, she herself would end up as collateral!

"I wish you all the best in motherhood and know that I will be here to support you throughout your endeavors."

Tick, tock. Tick, tock. Breathe, woman, breathe.

Saphron waited quietly before she realized Winter had said her peace.

After a long while, Ruby's voice broke through the painstaking silence. "Is that all, ma'am?"

The officer blinked. "Yes. That is all."

The reaper nodded slowly. "Okay."

Tick, tock. Tick, tock. Was it over? Is all well and good?

"I'm sorry about Weiss," Ruby said.

Saphron gulped when Winter stilled. Colonel Schnee stared back, her face blank. Not a trace of emotion laced her features—no sadness, no anger, no remorse. Or perhaps she was skillfully masking what she truly felt. Quirks of being an experienced Huntress and all...

The elder Arc nearly screamed when she heard the teacup click loudly with the platter. Good thing she kept still to see Winter set down her tea and take slow breaths with her eyes cast firmly on the carpet. Of course, Saphron was not the only person to lose a sibling.

Surprisingly, Ruby wheeled around the table towards their guest and took Winter's hands in hers.

"You're right, ma'am," the reaper said. "I haven't forgiven you. Not yet. But I'm trying..."

Saphron edged closer and caught a teardrop land on the top of Winter's palm.

"I appreciate your words. I wish you all the best in return, ma'am."

"Thank you, Ruby," Winter answered with a slight but noticeable quiver.

"Thank you, Winter," Ruby reciprocated with a small smile, "for being honest and straightforward with this."

* * *

It was after Winter had left the apartment that Saphron let her legs fail her. The elder Arc slid down to the floor with her mind in a mess. Ruby rolled over and poked at her with a breadstick.

Saphron looked up and was even more baffled to find her once very tense, very furious tenant tilting her head at her in confusion while she chewed on a handful of breadsticks.

"You okay?"

"How," the elder Arc breathed, "how did you not explode? You were stressing me out!"

The response was less than she expected. "Why would I? It's not good for the twins."

Saphron let her hands drop to her sides. "I thought you hated Winter."

"Not as much as I used to. Grudges harm the babies."

"You blamed her for...everything that happened."

"I still do," Ruby grunted. She wheeled back into the kitchen to retrieve more biscuits. "Jaune wouldn't want me to be angry forever. Weiss most definitely wouldn't like it if I was still pissed. Yang, too, and even Blake. Besides, bitterness is heavy negativity and I don't want to inconvenience the city's defense force with Grimm clamoring for my loathing."

Saphron chuckled. That made sense at least. "Of course."

"Jaune saved up a lot more than I thought he did," Ruby mused, rolling back into the foyer with a plate full of cookies. "I guess he was expecting something bigger than this."

"Really thinking ahead. Guess that explains why he was so stingy. Wouldn't even let Adrian go past the hundred lien mark whenever he took him out for a treat."

The reaper giggled. "Hundred lien is very generous. He averages like fifty at best."

The elder Arc raised her brow at her. "He doesn't spend more than fifty lien for you?"

A shrug. "On some days. He almost always stuck to the rations provided by the mess hall even though there were stalls with better-tasting food just around the corner. Even when we were on furlough, we would be spending like we were strapped."

Saphron sighed and pulled herself up and walked to the kitchen with Ruby wheeling alongside her. "Well, all that saving up is literally paying off. Won't have to worry about school fees and all that. The twins will sure feel their father's legacy."

Ruby, chortling, tapped her belly. "Yeah. They're going to inherit a lot."

* * *

**ORIGINALLY DRAFTED: April 20, 2019**

**LAST EDITED: April 30, 2019**

**INITIALLY UPLOADED: April 30, 2019**


End file.
